1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of exercising equipment and accessories, and more particularly to a novel protector adapted to be worn by a person engaging in an exercising procedure in order to protect the chest or upper torso in the event of an inadvertent lowering or dropping of weights during the procedure.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
In the past, it has been the conventional practice when employing free weights to perform an exercise such as a bench press by which the person engaging in the exercise raises and lowers a weighted bar while in a prone position. In some instances, safety is achieved by using another person as a "spotter" so that the spotter may temporarily relieve the pressure of the weights from the person performing the exercise. However, in most instances, a spotter is not used and should the person performing the exercise overexert himself, the weight bar may drop or rapidly lower and the center of the bar may fall against the chest or upper torso of the user, causing damage and injury.
Some attempts have been made to provide torso protection during the playing of sports or games which usually involve thick padding or inflatable bladders which are intended to absorb shock and load-bearing forces during impact of baseballs, footballs, hockey pucks or the like. Although such protection has been found useful, such devices are not applicable for weight lifting purposes and are therefore not used. Generally, such prior torso protectors are bulky and cannot be comfortably worn by a person engaged in personal exercising.
Therefore, a long-standing need has existed to provide a chest protector which is comfortable and which may be readily worn by a person engaged in extensive body maneuvering and manipulation in order to practice given exercises. Such a protector must include shock absorbing as well as load distribution characteristics in order to fully protect the user.